A Hobbit Story
by Mersong
Summary: Sharae Galloway (OC) is on her way to school. When someone runs a red light and causes an accident she is transported to Middle Earth... with her car. She finds the Dwarves and they all fill into her car to escape a pack of orcs. Where will this crazy adventure lead her? OCxCannon.
1. Chapter 1

Hello there, my name is Sharae Galloway. Here's just a short introduction of myself, I'm a second year college student, twenty years young, shy upon first meeting but a really nice outgoing gal once you get to know me. I'm 5'7 and an Aquarius. And I am very, _very_ late for school today!

I grabbed my bag and threw it into my car. In my rush I slammed my shin into the car door. I sucked in my breath and with tears prickling my eyes I started the car and drove out of my driveway. I was absolutely _not_ making the train today. I cursed myself for sleeping in. My car was old, a '93 Land Cruiser, I'd named him Grandpa. Old but reliable… with _horrible_ gas mileage! Luckily I'd filled up the tank yesterday and I was prepared for my forty-mile journey to school.

"Next time you won't stay up so late will you?" I berated myself.

I turned down the corner of my street and sped along to the intersection. I stopped at the red light and nervously tapped my fingers across the steering wheel. The light flashed green and I hit the gas, lurching my car into the intersection. I heard a long loud honk and I turned my head just in time to see a white car speed into my door. My head smashed into the side window. Though it seemed like slow motion it was over very quickly.

I was stunned for quite some time, I finally moved and reached up to my head, which was throbbing considerably. Pulling my hand away I noticed a fair amount of blood.

"Dang it!" I scowled.

I cut the engine and whipped my head up in anger, which only made my head throb more, and glared out my side window. No smoking wreck, no intersection. I stared out at a wide valley of golden grass and green bushes. Boulders spattered the area. There wasn't a soul around.

I gaped out at the landscape for a long time. My mind unable to figure out what was happening. My hands shook and my heart started ramming in my chest. I sat quietly trying to think of something, anything I could do to bring my mind back to some sense. I reached across my car slowly and grabbed my cellphone. There were not any bars. I tried anyway, fumbling with the buttons on my phone trying to dial my mother's number. The phone rang, and rang, and rang. There wasn't an answer. Panicking again, I went through all the contacts I had, dialed the police, punched in any numbers I could think of, tears were beginning to form in my eyes. All the time my headache worsened.

My heartbeat quickened and I reached for the door handle. I pushed on the door and it screeched in protest resisting the pressure. I scooted my legs around and kicked it fiercely in my anxiety until it flung open with a groan.

I nearly fell out of the car in my haste. My boots crunched on the grass. There wasn't a car, or a person, or building to be seen. My mind whirred and I braced myself against Grandpa trying to get my bearings.

"What the heck just happened?" I pinched my arm trying to wake myself from whatever dream this was. Nothing faltered. The grass still beat against my boots and pressure of the car on my back remained, still and firm. The tears were threatening to come again. What was happening? Where was I? My breathing quickened as I began to panic.

Before my mind could worry about the matter any further a terrible, guttural shout sounded across the area. My heart leapt into my throat and I jumped into a defensive position.

"What in the world… was _that_?!" I whispered to myself. My arms had acquired a fine amount of goose bumps.

That had not been a natural sound. I quickly spun around and jumped back into the safety of my car. I yanked the resisting door closed and sat as still as possible, holding my breath, listening for the sound again. It came, to my horror, this time closer. It echoed across the rocks menacingly.

I whipped my seatbelt around myself and started my car up again. The timing belt screeched loudly before the engine roared to life.

"Great, looks like Grandpa's feeling that accident." I mumbled unhappily.

I hit the gas; there was no way I was sticking around to meet whatever was making those awful sounds. I sped in, what I hoped to be, the opposite direction of the sounds but had to slam on my breaks as a herd of… rabbits?! crossed in front of me. They were gone in half a second and as I looked after them I noticed a wooden sleigh following behind, a little hunched figure with a long wooden staff latched onto it. The scene looked all too familiar and my mind strained to remember. It kind of reminded me of a funny little wizard from a movie I'd recently seen. I mean, he was on a sled… pulled by rabbits… wait.

"R… Radagast?!" I nearly shouted. "What in the world?" I whispered to myself eyes following him as they disappeared behind a boulder. My mind spun. I'd watched the new movie "The Hobbit" a few weeks ago, and what I had seen brought the picture right back to my mind.

Why in the world was I seeing this quirky little wizard? Why were he and I even in the same world? Fiction, Radagast was a fictional character! Once again I wondered as to where I had unceremoniously been transported.

My mind switched over to something more important at the moment. At this point in the movie, if I was seeing the real, true Radagast the Brown, then he was undoubtedly being hunted down by a pack of… something shot past me, furry and snarling. Another was soon to follow. My mouth hung open as another slowed and turned in my direction, a distorted ugly being upon it's back.

"ORCS," I gasped in terror. The warg underneath the orc snarled ferociously and charged toward me.

"No way," I whispered, "No way, no way, no way, NO WAY!" I screamed as the warg lunged onto the hood of my car. In my panic I slammed the gas pedal to the floor and the car lurched forward. The wargs claws raked a across the metal. I apologized to Grandpa profusely. The warg flew off after a sharp jerk of the steering wheel.

In my haste I'd driven myself right into a pack of stampeding wargs and orcs. I wove through them, screaming all the while. I came horribly close to hitting one of the giant wolf things. The orc on its back swung his mace and bashed my side mirror off. I screamed and swerved away from his next attack. Breaking through the pack, I slowed my speed to maneuver around the boulders in my path. I tried to lose myself amongst them hoping the orcs wouldn't find me. My rearview mirror had never seen such use.

As I curved around another boulder I had to slam onto my breaks again. This time I'd almost ran into a scowling dwarf and a serious looking wizard. We hesitated to look at each other in pure shock before there was a snarl and a warg leapt from the rock above them. An arrow flew from somewhere and a whole group of dwarves came from hiding to finish off the screaming creatures. The noises were horrendous and left me with a grimace on my face.

Before anyone could do anything else howls could be heard in the distance. They were getting nearer. The pack was heading our way. The wizard yelled and the dwarves scuttled off in the opposite direction, leaving me to stare after them in stunned silence. My brain finally clicked on and I hit the gas speeding after them. It's sad to say I caught up to them in a matter of seconds but while a dwarf might run fast, they were no match for 212 horsepower.

I quickly drove past the group and swerved in front of them. I opened my door and jumped out opening the passenger doors and flinging the top of the trunk open.

The dwarves, still running at top speed, noticed the odd girl shouting and waving ahead of them. She motioned to the odd contraption behind her

"Get in" She yelled across to them. Thorin glanced at Gandalf. The wizard looked back to him with a knowing smile.

"Will we be taking her up on this offer Master Dwarf?" He huffed in his steady jog. The dwarf frowned disapprovingly. Gandalf tilted his head "I do not think she offers us harm," He added pointedly. Fili and Kili joined in.

"Did you see how fast that thing went?" asked Fili. "We could be well out of here before the wargs even catch up!" Shouted Kili. Thorin's lip twitched. "Uncle! Come _on_!" They shouted together. Thorin sighed deeply.

"If this get's us all killed…" he muttered. Fili and Kili smiled.


	2. Chapter 2

Hello everyone! I just wanted to thank those who have read my story up to this point! This is my very first fan fiction and I'm really excited about it! I don't think I'll be following the exact plot line of the original story, I'll keep it pretty close though but since I've added a whole new mode of transportation who knows how out of whack the story might get! Please bear with my writing skills, I haven't written in years and I am very rusty. Though I've gone through and tried editing myself there are probably plenty of things that I've missed. If you have any fun suggestions for this story please send me a note or review, I'd love to hear them! This is all fun for me and I hope to make it fun for everyone else as well! Please enjoy my latest chapter.

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The dwarves ran up to the strange metal contraption. They looked up at it, it was towering, and even Gandalf was not tall enough to see over the top of it. The metal was painted a dark sand color and it gleamed in the sunlight. The wheels that it stood on were not like any wheel they'd come across. They were black with patterned pits rolling down the center of them. There was also the odd fact that the thing had doors, not dissimilar to the kind found on a house. The whole thing was rumbling. The sound was unsettling and not natural in the least. Thorin paused and gave a questioning glance at the girl standing beside it. She motioned for them again.

"Come _on_, just get in! Those _things_ are coming!" She tried, panicking. The dwarves glanced behind them. Orcs and wargs were rushing their way. Gandalf was already around the front of the car and stealing the single seat in the front. The dwarves were close to follow. Balin, Gloin, Thorin, and Bilbo packed into the backseat. Bifur and Bofur heaved Bombur into the trunk, followed by Oin, Dori, Fili, Kili, and Ori. Two unfortunate dwarves, Dwalin and Nori, grabbed onto the tailgate, their feet balancing on the bumper.

Once they had all scrambled into the vehicle I whipped the passenger door closed. I glanced at the oncoming attackers; they were closing in quickly. I looked around to the back of the car and pointedly spoke to the dwarves clinging to it.

"Hold on tight!" I yelled in panic. The two gave me serious nods. I raced back to my seat and pulled myself into the car, slamming the door behind me. The dwarves looked back nervously as I shifted into gear.

"They're coming!" Thorin shouted. I looked over my shoulder.

"Brace yourselves!" I warned hurriedly and slammed the gas pedal down. The kick of power that came from the contraption had the dwarves thrown about. Gandalf reached for the handle on the door and held on for dear life, Fili and Kili nearly back flipped, and Bombur rolled over everyone in the trunk. The car screeched as the timing belt slipped again.

"Come on Grandpa, you can do it, please just get us through this alive. Don't give out on me." I murmured to myself tapping on the dash soothingly.

A cry sounded followed by a loud crack. I glanced into the review mirror. The wargs had caught up. Dwalin and Nori had switched their grip so they were holding on with one hand while brandishing their weapons in the other. A fallen orc could be seen fading into the distance. The rest of the pack pulled up along side us. The dwarves shouted as they came into view. Bilbo backed as far away from the sides of the car as he could. Thorin glanced at the orcs, snarling and screeching, as they raised their weapons to attack.

"Woman!?" he called warningly.

"I know! I know!" I replied with panic. "Prepare for impact!" I roared. The dwarves stared at the woman with worry. She couldn't be serious. Thorin glared menacingly.

"Woman, if you get us all kil…" I promptly ignored his threatening and swerved the car left, into the nearest warg. There was a bang and the sound of cracking bone and all the inhabitants of the car lurched to one side. The yelping warg flew back and landed a ways off. The dwarves groaned at the impact and righted themselves only for me to yell, "Round two!" while spinning the car into the warg on the other side. This time the impact was greater and although the warg had been sent flying so had some of the dwarves. Ori nearly flew across the car into the opposing window. Dori had grabbed onto him midflight and pulled him back down. Fili and Kili had grabbed onto Dwalin before he could be thrown off the edge of the bumper.

Hearts were racing as we finally began to outpace the pack. As we pulled away from the wargs I could hear the orcs screaming in protest. The dwarves all cheered as the orcs fell farther and farther behind, their shouts of fury fading. I released the breath I'd been holding.

"Alright, time to gain some ground," I stated as our speed few higher. No one protested but looks were exchanged as the scenery around them blurred and flashed by.

Gandalf would loosen his grip on the handle every once in awhile to point out the direction the woman should take, then he'd reach back and steady himself as the car bumped along the uneven earth. The ride was by no means smooth. Driving across pavement and an untamed field were two very different things and while my Land Cruiser was more than capable of taking on the terrain, it was not so kind to its passengers in the process.

Once we reached a certain speed the bouncing and jostling was just too much. Everyone's teeth were chattering and a few dwarves and an unhappy hobbit were looking quite sick in the face. After a brief glance back I eased off the gas. I was not in the best state myself. My head was throbbing from all the knocking about and blackness was starting around the edges of my vision. I pushed my eyes closed then opened them again hoping to clear some of the fuzziness from my head. Thorin finally spoke, now that he wasn't afraid of biting his own tongue off.

"I thing we've gained enough ground, we've gone well past their traveling range. I believe we can stop and camp for the night," he called to the woman in the front. The other dwarves grumbled in agreement. The woman did not slow the "Grandpa" as she had called it.

Gandalf scrunched his eyebrows together and looked toward the young woman curiously. Her head had lolled back onto the cushion behind it and her eyes closed. His eyes widened and he called out to the leader of the company.

"Master Dwarf, I do believe we are in a bit of a predicament," He stated, staring at the girl. Thorin lifted his head, what was it _now_? Gandalf gestured toward the woman in the front, "I seems the controller of this grandpa has all but fainted," he stated. Thorin pushed to the front grabbing the woman's shoulder in the process. Her face was blank of expression and her eyes were definitely shut. He shook the shoulder he had in his grip. She did not wake. He huffed exasperatedly.

"She's fainted?!" Cried Kili lifting his head to look for himself. "Then why is this thing still moving… and who is steering?"

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Alright everyone! Another chapter down! Thank you all for your support, I'm so glad you're enjoying it! If any of you have any suggestions for a pairing for this story just let me know. Also send me notes about who you think should learn how to drive ;D


	3. Chapter 3

Hello everyone! I am so sorry for the long gap between chapters. I caught the flu and was out for the count for a few days. Updates will probably be a little slow due to school and some other things but don't give up one me, I plan on finishing this story!

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The grandpa veered right and the dwarves began to panic. They continued to race away and at an alarming speed. Thorin stared at Gandalf, nearly in defeat.

"How do we stop this thing?" He implored the wizard. Kili suggested that they could all jump out. Gandalf looked back at the dwarf forebodingly.

"If you or I tried jumping out at a speed like this we'd die from the impact," he stated, pointing out the stupidity of the idea. Kili folded his arms in contempt a frown on his face. The grandpa continued turning and all the dwarves were now smashed together against the left side of the car. Gandalf switched his attention back to Thorin.

"Grab her legs Thorin!" Gandalf ordered as he steadied the steering wheel. Thorin balked.

"Why in the name of Arda would I do that?" Thorin shot back at the wizard eyebrows twisted in confusion. Gandalf gave an angry shout.

"Thorin Oakenshield, in all of your years knowing me, have I ever led you to do anything foolish?" He huffed, "Do it now, Thorin, before we find our way into another disaster!" Thorin raged but reached over to lift the girl's legs away from their place underneath the wheel. The grandpa slowed abruptly throwing the dwarves forward. Dwalin and Nori had fallen in through the open trunk and Thorin, since he'd been reaching over the seats, had flown into the front and had all but face planted into the dashboard.

As the car slowly rolled to a stop all that could be heard was a chorus of heavy breathing. They held their positions until they were sure the grandpa was going to move no further.

"Out!" Thorin shouted, dislodging his face from the dashboard and scrambling away from the front, "Before it starts moving again!" The dwarves scrambled out through the opening in the trunk, not knowing how to get the side doors open. Gandalf had figured the handle out though, good thing too, how odd would it have been to see a lanky, old wizard scrambling over waves of seat cushions.

Gandalf jogged around the front of the grandpa, which was still humming strongly. He pulled at the handle to the door the woman was behind, it groaned and whined as he jerked it open. The dwarves made their way about and huddled around Gandalf, who was now trying to pull the woman from her seat. She seemed to be tangled in something and Gandalf was struggling to free her of it. Fili made his way beside him.

"Allow me," he pulled his knife from its sheath. He reached for the odd shaped rope. Gandalf gave it to him gladly. Fili brought his knife to it and began sawing away at the strange material.

"This is the oddest rope I have ever come across," he mumbled as he finished cutting it through. The rope whipped away from his grasp and disappeared into the side of the grandpa. The dwarves jumped in surprise.

"This whole deal just keeps getting stranger and stranger," Dori mused.

Fili and Gandalf untangled the girl and hauled her through the door setting her down in the tall, golden grass. The rest of the dwarves huddled around examining the woman who had saved them. Fili reached over and tilted her head to the side. Her long, brown hair was coated in a layer of drying blood; it trailed along the side of her face and neck.

"She's injured," he stated, to no one in particular. Thorin and Gandalf glanced at the injury Fili had discovered. Gandalf sighed.

"It explains the reason for her fainting mid flight," he pondered glancing back at the grandpa idling beside the company. The doors were heavily dented though Gandalf recalled there already being a large amount of damage to the woman's door before their run in with the orcs.

"I believe she had been attacked previously, before meeting up with our company," he surmised. The group looked back at the car, there were two large dents in either of the two doors. The shine that had covered them previously was dulled and scratched. Both of the glass windows were shattered.

"She did a number on that thing," mumbled Oin, "looks like it's about to fall apart," he glanced back down at the girl, "Crazy woman." He finished before hobbling away.

"Well I think she's quite a beauty, and tall too. The bravery's a plus, don't suppose she's an elf do you?" rambled Bofur cluelessly. Everyone groaned and rolled their eyes while Thorin tensed visibly.

"You just had to mention it, didn't ya," Balin whapped the back of his head. Bofur raised his hands in defeat. Thorin was mumbling about how he was not about to start saving elves, no matter how many times they tried to save him while Fili and Kili argued that it wasn't so bad if it was just this once was it? Ori, ignoring all the conflicted chatterings, made his way to the girl's head and flipped her hair away from her ear.

"She's human!" He piped proudly above the grumbling. The tension eased a bit and Balin made his way over to take a closer look.

"That she is, lad! You've nothing to worry about, Thorin, she's just a young human lass… and quite lost by the look of it," he motioned to her attire which included a jacket with curious symbols on it, a pair of trousers that were form fitting and quite scandalous, and a pair of calf length boots that were very oddly crafted.

Thorin sighed tiredly. Whoever she was and wherever she'd come from would have to wait. They needed to set up camp and rest if they were to continue on the next day.

"Grab her pack," he motioned to Dwalin, who unhappily made his way back to the grandpa in search of the woman's belongings. "Set up camp, start a fire," He motioned to the rest of the group but before two unfortunate souls could follow, Thorin called them aside, "Fili, Kili. I want you to watch the girl, tell me if she wakes… and don't get distracted this time," he glared. Fili and Kili hung their heads, the memory of the trolls still fresh in their minds, but they willingly took up Thorin's offer of redemption.

"We won't, Thorin," Kili assured. The two brothers stayed behind while the others went around busily fixing up a camp. They sat beside each other at the woman's side watching as she steadily breathed in and out. Eventually a steaming bowl of food was brought to them by a hesitant hobbit.

"Would you care for some dinner?" He asked tentatively, glancing from the two dwarves to the sleeping woman. It was a silly question and the dwarves ignored it, grabbing the bowls and digging in. The hobbit shrugged and sat with them as they ate staring down at the strange girl. He gave one quick glance at the behemoth contraption just a few feet away.

"What on Middle Earth do you suppose that thing is?" He questioned the pair beside him. Kili stared at him with crunched eyebrows.

"If Gandalf doesn't know then how do you suppose we do?" He asked. Bilbo rolled his eyes as Fili looked up from his food gazing at the bizarre scene in front of him.

"It all seems _too_ strange. Peculiar objects and nameless women popping up in the middle of nowhere." He glanced at the girl; she twitched. The three of them stilled, watching as the girl began to wake. In a panic Kili lifted the hobbit from his seat.

"Quick, burglar, go fetch Thorin!" He hissed apprehensively. The hobbit was off in seconds and making his way across the camp. Fili and Kili stared at the girl as she opened her eyes, not knowing what else to do.


	4. Chapter 4

I'm sorry it's taken me awhile to upload this chapter! This one's a little slow but the next one will be full of giggles! ;) Thanks for reading! I hope you like this chapter and thank you for all of the awesome reviews! They make me so happy!

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My head throbbed and I groaned, rolling onto my side. I was lying on a bed of tall grass. It was dark except for the warm glow of a fire. Grandpa was a few feet off idling endlessly. I stared at it in confusion. When had I managed to get myself out of the car? The fact that I didn't recall the action frightened me. What had happened? What was going on? Where was I? My eyes darted around my line of vision frantically, trying to place my situation.

A rustling noise had me flipping over in panic. Just next to me was a pair of men, very short men. They sat in silence starring with furrowed brows. Their features were dimmed from the darkness. I could only make out stark details. The one on the right was blond with long hair and a braided mustache. The second was rugged looking with long brown hair and short stubble across his face.

I jumped up in surprise preparing for a scream. The two, noticing my intent, jumped across the gap between us and clapped their hands over my mouth.

"Screaming in these parts tends to bring about bad things, milady," The blond one whispered warningly, worry creasing his brow.

"Promise you won't scream?" asked the one with brown hair, staring into my eyes intensely. I nodded my head hesitantly and the hands covering my mouth slowly pulled away. Before any other words could be exchanged a third figure came up beside the two.

I knew who this dwarf was. His aura alone was enough to make his presence known. It was Thorin Oakenshield. I gasped and took a small step back in surprise. He looked at me with slight curiosity before he began to speak.

"Well," he sighed, " Now that you're awake, you can tell us your name," he stated bluntly. I had been expecting an entourage of arduous questions so the simple statement startled me slightly and I was slow to respond.

"M… My name is Sharae… uh, Sharae Galloway. Nice to meet you," I nodded my head as a kind of bow. I noticed the two brothers grinning immensely. Thorin gestured to them.

"My name is Thorin Oakenshield," He stated with a hard gaze, "And these are my nephews, Fili and Kili," he introduced while the two brothers bowed deeply with an "At your service". I smiled shyly and nodded my head at them.

"It's nice to meet you as well," I added. The boys' grins widened. Thorin interrupted our exchanges.

"On behalf of me and my company, I would like to thank you for helping us in our previous predicament," he didn't look me in the eyes while saying it and from what I knew of the Hobbit story, Thorin wasn't one to thank people, especially when he didn't trust them. I figured the consideration was due, in _great_ part, to Gandalf. I smiled warmly at the gesture.

"You're welcome, I suppose, but it looks I blacked out while driving which must have been frightening," I apologized sheepishly. The dwarves looked at each other with knowing faces, Thorin's appearing a bit miffed.

"I'm sorry that I caused so much alarm, I'm not sure why I blacked out like that," I apologized, reaching up to the injury on my head. I never passed out when I hurt myself so the fact that I'd fainted today worried me. I'd obviously been injured worse than I had originally believed. I figured that I'd received a concussion from the accident.

Thorin mumbled to himself and made his way back to the group at the mention of the incident. The two brothers simply grinned and came over, grabbing my arms, and half dragged me to the fire.

"It wasn't that bad, Gandalf knew what to do and we all got out in one piece… well, except for Thorin," they laughed mischievously. Kili leaned in closer telling me how Thorin had face planted into the dashboard and received a lovely welt on his forehead. He whispered everything so Thorin wouldn't hear and scold him. I giggled quietly at the story, which made Kili brim with smiles.

Once we'd made our way to the fire at the center of the camp a friendly dwarf made his way toward us. His funny little hat stuck out at the sides and his toothy grin beamed in our direction.

"Bofur, my lady, at your service!" he took a grand bow then stood and looked me in the eyes, smiling all the time. I quickly realized that he wanted me to introduce myself.

"Oh, um, well… I'm Sharae Galloway, at yours?" I questioned, hoping that that was the correct response. He seemed to be pleased with my introduction.

"Ah, miss Sharae, a pleasure to make your acquaintance and what a lovely voice you have!" He chirped pleasantly while holding out his hand. I blushed immensely and noticed the bothers at my side giving each other a playful smile. So that's why they'd been grinning at each other so much when I'd introduced myself. I felt the blush on my cheeks deepen. Bofur's hand remained extended and I presumed he wanted me to take it. I reached up and he grabbed my hand, happily leading me around the camp and having all the dwarves introduce themselves to me. I introduced myself in return.

Most of the dwarves welcomed me warmly. I received a few gruff introductions, which made me feel quite aware of suspicion held against me.

Two others in the group took more of an interest in me and treated me very kindly. The first one had been the dwarf Ori. Right after we'd introduced ourselves he'd reached into his bag and pulled out a knitted scarf.

"It's cold out, miss," he'd stated politely, handing me the scarf, "Don't want you catching a cold," he gave me a goofy grin. I beamed at him.

"Thank you very much," I took the scarf and wrapped it around my neck. The fabric was a bit scratchy but it would keep me warm and on this chilly night, I was very grateful for it.

The other kind soul among the company was that of Bilbo Baggins himself. He greeted me kindly and took it upon himself to make me feel like I fit in. He almost treated me like one would treat a niece or grandchild, which was a comical thing that made me feel quite odd due to the fact that he was about two feet shorter than I was. I was grateful for the kindness all the same.

Most of the other dwarfs treated me like a little sister or a young kid. It was a little odd but I was glad that they were at least considering me more of a friend than someone who was so obviously an outsider. While I was thinking about this Fili and Kili came up to me, looking me up and down with obvious confusion.

"The question I am most stumped on is why you are wearing such unusual attire," mused Fili while the two of them took hold of the sleeves of my jacket, examining the fabric closely. Bofur joined in the musings, poking at the ribbon tied into my hair. Even Ori and Nori became interested in the whole ordeal, kneeling down to examine my snow boots.

"What a strange material," Kili wondered, feeling the texture of my coat. "What is it made of?" he asked.

"It's actually made chemically. It's flame resistant and waterproof. I don't really know how to explain it any better than that," I answered carefully. I had no idea how to explain out advanced fabric making to these simple dwarves. They were already staring at me wide eyed.

"You just keep getting stranger and stranger!" They laughed happily. "And you're wearing trousers of all things!" stated Fili questioningly.

"And they're so close fitting…" Kili finished Fili's thought, "What on Middle Earth drove you to wear such clothing?" He asked, taken aback. I simply laughed at their expressions thinking about how they would have reacted to seeing some of the more extreme fashion statements from where I came from.

"This is normal attire where I'm from," I giggled, "To me _you're_ the ones wearing strange clothes!" They raised their eyebrows looking at each others clothing, checking for any signs of "strangeness". Seeing none they wondered how in the world she found their clothes abnormal. They were wearing typical attire for anyone in Middle Earth. Questions started piling up in their minds. Bofur spoke up first.

"So, where are you from lass? An' what're ya doing way out here in the middle o' nowhere?" he grinned. I paused to consider his question, not quite sure of the answer myself. I started by confirming a very important point.

"So, I am in Middle Earth right now aren't I?" I questioned hesitantly. I just needed it to be said, confirmed, so I knew without a doubt that I was not in Kansas anymore. As the expression goes.

"Of course you are, lass! Where else would ya be?" He joked, others joining in with his laughter. It soon faded when they noticed the serious expression on my face. Bofur glanced over at me with a look of cautious confusion, "Where_ are_ you from then…" He asked half to himself, half to me. By now the entire company had been drawn in by the seriousness of what was being discussed. Curiosity and unease etched on their faces.

_Why in Arda's name was she worried about whether or not she was in Middle Earth_? Thorin grew cautious once again. She began to speak.

"Well, if that's true… Then I am a _very_ long way from home."


	5. Chapter 5

Hey everyone, I'm sorry for such a large gap between updates. It'll be a bit slow until finals are done, though I do have a whole notebook full of the chapters to come! Just so you know, this story won't be following the original story line at some point. I'll be taking it off in a new direction with the same goal in mind. They will still be going to Erebor, they'll just go about it in a different way then the book or the movie, if that bothers some people then you might not want to read on but if you're up for creative intervention I'm sure it will be an exciting ride!

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Bilbo pulled a log over and sat me down on it, chattering about how exhausted I must be and oh! We must have that injury looked at, you poor soul!

I laughed in my head at the silliness of it all. The log was small and close to the ground and while this may not have been a problem for a hobbit, or even a dwarf, it had my long legs bent and crunched against my chest awkwardly. I'm sure it was a sight to see and my thoughts were confirmed when Fili and Kili spotted me and broke into a fit of laughter. Bilbo didn't seem to notice as he went to fetch something to clean the cut on my head.

Kili came over to where I was while Fili went to fetch me a taller seat. He found a large log and brought it over, sitting it next to me.

"That ought to work a bit nicer," He beamed, brushing the bark off his hands. I tried getting up, shifting my weight to my legs, which were tight against my chest.

"I'm sure that it is a lovely seat and I would gladly use it only I can't get out of the set I'm already in!" I wiggled trying to free my legs. The two brothers laughed and grabbed either of my arms tugging me up. I nearly flew past them with the force they used. I let out a little yelp as I tried to steady myself. All of the dwarves found this incredibly amusing and laughed at my uncoordination.

"You're like a little feather!" Laughed Kili. "You just fly through the air like it's nothing!" He teased. I laughed with him.

"Yeah, well, that's just about all I'm good at," I told him jokingly. Everyone was laughing as Bilbo came back with a bowl of hot water and a rag.

"What's with all this laughter? Stop tossing her around! She's injured, for heaven's sake!" He pushed the brothers aside and sat me down, luckily, on the new log. He tilted my head so the injury was facing him, tsked, and then proceeded to dab away at the dried blood.

"You're a very brave woman, miss Sharae," he mused, washing out the cloth and returning to the cut. "Gathering up a grungy bunch like us and taking on those orks like you did," he finished. I smiled to myself.

"I was only doing what anyone else would," I pointed out, "It's only natural to help someone you see is in need," I continued. Bilbo smiled crookedly.

"It was brave all the same, Sharae," A loud voice interrupted him.

"That's right, thanks for saving our tails!" Kili beamed, Fili nodding beside him. The rest of the group joined in with their gratitude, the atmosphere turning rather joyous. Bilbo finished cleaning up the side of my head. Balin came up to me after Bilbo went off to wash out the bowl.

"I think your head's taken quite a shaking, lass, you might want to take it easy for a while yet," In translation I supposed he meant that I'd received a concussion, which I had assumed earlier. The confirmation of my assumptions didn't make me feel any better about it though. Balin shifted my hair away from the wound "That cut will heal with a little time, it's not very deep." He grinned. Bilbo showed up again, sitting on the short log I'd previously inhabited.

"Thank you so much for your help, Bilbo. I appreciate it very much," I smiled gratefully at him. Before Bilbo could reply Bombur interrupted.

"So if you're not from Middle Earth, lass, then where do you hail from?" He asked, intensely curious. I knew the questions would pop up eventually so I wasn't too put off by his curiosity. I just wondered how in the world I would explain alternate dimensions to a company of dwarves. The only one I thought who could possibly comprehend my situation was Gandalf. The dwarves sat in obvious interest waiting for my story. I sighed, figuring I'd just explain the best I could and if they didn't understand, too bad for them.

"Well, I… I'm from a place called Earth," The group had a collective blank stare, "Uhm… from North America," I tried, of course there was still no recognition in the dwarves expressions, "In the United States? In Utah?" They still looked confused. I wasn't exactly surprised by their lack of understanding, more I was stumped as to how I could explain anything if they didn't even know the place I was speaking of existed. I sighed and moved on, "I'm not even from this time. In my world we're, like, thousands of years ahead of this time!" They'd understood that much and they balked at the idea.

"That's impossible." Growled Dwalin

"She's crazy, I knew it!" Grumbled Gloin.

Thorin's glare deepened while Gandalf's eyes widened in understanding. I continued.

"There aren't any dwarves, elves, hobbits or wizards, those types of things only exist in books in my world!" I exclaimed as the dwarves stared at me in shock. Gandalf gave me a questioning look.

"if you'be never seen a wizard, or a dwarf, or a hobbit, my dear, then how do you know that those are the beings that stand before you now?" He raised a grey eyebrow.

Oh man, I'd opened a can of worms…

I drew in a breath to begin explaining but let it out with a sigh, now knowing how to say it.

Thorin had been growing wearier by the moment and he glared, stalking towards me and folding his arms in contempt.

"Tell us what we need to know, woman," He threatened. Gandalf briskly interrupted him, trying to keep the mood from souring.

"If you would, Lady Sharae, could you tell us how it is you seem to know of our company and those in it before we could tell you ourselves?" He asked knowingly. The other dwarves looked around to each other, questioning what he meant by "already knowing" about the company.

I looked at him with wide eyes. How had he known? I was sure I hadn't let anything of my knowledge slip. He continued to look into my eyes with wisdom beyond the years. I cleared my mind of the confusion. Of _course_ he knew. He was _Gandalf._ I was not on Earth anymore and the fact that this wizard could see through my mask should come as no surprise to me. I looked back at him intently, showing that I understood what he was asking.

"Are you sure you want me to tell you what I know?" I tested. Gandalf's eyes remained intent as he nodded in assurance. I sighed again; this was going to cause a ruckus.

"Well, the truth is, I already know the story of this company," I paused, "From beginning to end, matter of fact," I concluded. Stares of wonder and confusion were shared. A few scoffs were heard. I was not surprised by the next comment from Thorin.

"I don't believe you. How could you have even _heard_ about our company when we have held all of our actions secret?" HE sneered. I tilted my head and glared back at him.

"I don't really know how to make you believe all that I've said but I suppose I can start by listing off the aspects of your journey thus far," I huffed, haughtily. Eyebrows were raised in skepticism. I smirked to myself and proceeded to tell them their story starting from the Hobbit hole up 'till the camp.

By the end of my tale their eyes were shocked wide open and their mouths were wide with awe. Thorin, instead of being impressed, had grown glaringly defensive. He marched up to me and stared down furiously.

"You're a spy then, aren't you? Why are you following our company? Who are you working for?" He growled with one had on the hilt of his sword. I looked back at him with shocked eyes. Stupid, stubborn dwarf! I fumed until I remembered something shared in whispers between Gandalf and Thorin. Something no spy would have been able to hear. In a swift movement I abandoned my chair and stood directly in front of the dwarf. After a brief stare down, of mostly me checking to see if he really was going to cut me to pieces, which I concluded he wouldn't, I leaned toward him much in the same manner as Gandalf had in the Hobbit whole earlier in the journey and whispered.

"I cannot guarantee his safety," I quoted word for word, "Nor will I be responsible for his fate." I finished pulling away from his frozen expression.

Thorin knew those words well. They had haunted his thoughts until he had portrayed them to Gandalf that day at the hobbits'. The way she had whispered them, the emotions she'd portrayed, were an exact replica of what had been shared between himself and the wizard. There was no way she could have copied those words unless she had been standing right there with them that night. A slight chill went through him as she stood in front of him arms crossed, waiting for a response.

"How is it possible you know such things?" He breathed in shock. The other dwarves were now thoroughly curious and they gathered around hoping to get some insight into this mystery. The woman smiles and began her tale.

"In my world, as I said, there aren't any other beings besides humans. There is no magic and our technology is, as you can tell," I gestured to my car, " highly advanced. Now, as to how I know who you are, that is harder to explain. I've read your entire tale in a book, a fantasy book, invented by a brilliant author. It is a well-known story in my time but it is considered a tall tale. Nothing in it is considered to be real or true… and that is why I was so frightened to see you all. I don't even know how I ended up here. I was driving down the street when someone ran into me and then…" I reached up to feel the cut along my head, which still ached.

The story had left all the dwarves speechless. This woman knew their story then? All the way to it's end? Should they ask her of their fates? If their quest would be fulfilled? Before anyone could ask though Gandalf broke the silence.

"Well then, those are some thoughts that will take getting used to Sharae. I am sure this will be discussed again in the future but for now we should ponder what's been said and get to the dinner Bombur has graciously put together for us." He gently pushed me back onto my chair and turned the dwarves in the direction of the fire leaving Bilbo and I to sit in dazed silence. Bilbo awkwardly turned in my direction.

"Well, Sharae, I'm sorry such an unfortunate event has come upon you. It seems quite a lot like my leaving Bag End." He fiddled with his jacket a bit, "But there's no need to worry really, the dwarves are really quite protective, you're sure to be safe with us," he grinned. I smiled back at him, thankful that someone was at least trying to relate to what I was going through. Bilbo was turning out to be a reliable friend. Little pieces of worry were starting to flake off my conscious. A few moments later Fili and Kili were in front of us, handing us bowls of food. I happily took it with a "thank you". Fili, Kili, Ori, and Balin sat closest to us. I was glad for the extra company. The food was nothing marvelous but luckily I wasn't a picky eater and finished it off quickly. Just then a thought crossed my mind.

"Where's my bag?" I asked, a little panicked, "Have you seen it?" I looked around to the dwarves hopefully.

"Ah!" called Ori, "It's just here," he fetched it from its place on the ground and carried it carefully over to me.

I grabbed it and thanked Ori while unzipping the large zipper. The dwarves around me huddled for a closer look. I pulled out my hairbrush and began to go through my tangled, dirty hair. Grass had lodged itself into every knot and the place where Bilbo had cleaned my cut was sticking up at odd angles.

The dwarves let out an exasperated sigh. I lifted an eyebrow in confusion.

"Of all the things you could have pulled out of your mystery bag, you pull out a hairbrush!" Fili laughed. I looked up at him with surprised eyes.

"Well, what were you expecting?" I wondered laughingly. Kili jumped at the opportunity.

"Have you got anything in there similar to that grandpa over there?" I exclaimed, pointing to my car a little ways off. I broke into a fit of laughter. He frowned in puzzlement. I held up my hand waiting for my laughing to die down.

"That thing over there is a _car_. Ha ha! I've named it Grandpa though, so I can see where there would be confusion," I wiped a tear from my eye.

"But I suppose you're right, I could show you a few things from my world. I hope your ready though, this bag is chuck full of them!" I said while reaching into my pack for something that would blow the dwarves away.

* * *

I just wanted to thank everyone who has watched or favorited or reviewed (or all three!) my story! It definitely keeps me a happy writer! Thanks for the support you awesome people!


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